Thursday, December 17, 2015

I needed a microphone stand adapter to hold my Zoom H2n. I use the recorder during live shows as an additional stereo microphone. I use the line out jack to send a stereo signal right to the mixing board. The adapter that Zoom sells for this purpose will hold the recorder in a microphone stand just fine but I wanted to find a way to secure the cable that goes into the 1/8 jack more securely.

This adapter has a 1/8 plug at the top that goes into the line out jack on the recorder and a 1/4 TRS jack on the bottom. This provides a secure strain free connection to the recorder and allows plugging a 1/4 TRS stereo cable into the bottom of the adapter that can then feed into the mixing board.

Making the adapter

I started out with a donor body from a broken hand held dynamic.

The first step was to remove the capsule and internal components. Then I unscrewed the upper portion of the body.

This piece was then machined to create a recess to allow for access to thumb screw for holding the recorder to the top plate.

Next I cut a slot in the top of the lower portion of the body.This slot allows the cable to pass through.

Slot cut in lower body

Top and bottom screwed back together

Next I cut a top plate from a piece of bamboo plywood.

The upper piece of the body was epoxied to the top plate with a 1/4-20 thumb screw inserted through the hole.

The cable used internally is a Hosa 1/4 to 1/8 right angle adapter.

The 1/4 inch end was epoxied into the bottom of the microphone body with the 1/8 inch end running out of the slot in the side of the body. A rubber grommet was attached around the cable to prevent damage.

Screwing the sections of the body back together completed the adapter.